Synovus Financial Corp Acquires Shares of 1,908 Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)

Synovus Financial Corp bought a new position in Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,908 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Owens Corning by 46.2% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 367 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 43.4% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,321 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Owens Corning by 0.3% during the second quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 198,625 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,505,000 after acquiring an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in Owens Corning in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,690,000. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Owens Corning in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $251,000. 88.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Owens Corning Trading Down 4.8 %

NYSE:OC opened at $174.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $191.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $178.02. Owens Corning has a one year low of $138.70 and a one year high of $214.53.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The construction company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.15 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Owens Corning will post 15.46 EPS for the current year.

Owens Corning Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. This is an increase from Owens Corning’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 6th. Owens Corning’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.49%.

Insider Activity at Owens Corning

In related news, insider Gunner Smith sold 17,450 shares of Owens Corning stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total transaction of $3,336,265.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 18,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,606,990.54. This trade represents a 48.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on OC. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Owens Corning from $213.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays upgraded Owens Corning from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $192.00 to $245.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Owens Corning from $189.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Owens Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Owens Corning from $197.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.83.

About Owens Corning

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications.